Ten things to do in Northeast Ohio: Feb. 14-20

Cleveland Play House's newest production, 'Breath and Imagination,' brings to light the story of a little-known trailblazer in the cause for equality: Roland Hayes, the son of former slaves who became a world-renowned classical vocalist.

You have about a month left to catch Kent State University graduate Diana Al-Hadid's monumental sculpture, 'Nolli's Orders,' at the Akron Art Museum.

Here's the latest installment of our weekly list of coming arts, culture and entertainment events that runs each Thursday on CrainsCleveland.com.

On tap for the next week: "Breath and Imagination" (logo at left) at the Cleveland Play House, a monumental sculpture at the Akron Art Museum, comedian Amy Schumer at PlayhouseSquare, a John Coltrane/Lou Reed tribute in Lakewood, "The Umbrellas of Cherbourg" at Cinematheque, and more.

Sephardic Journey: Wanderings of the Spanish Jews" is the new show from baroque orchestra Apollo’s Fire, which will present five performances of the show through Feb. 25.

Art

Now through Sunday, March 16: You have about a month left to catch Kent State University graduate Diana Al-Hadid's monumental sculpture, “Nolli's Orders,” at the Akron Art Museum. “Hovering between architectural ruin and figurative sculpture, the thirteen-foot high sculpture is constructed of steel, polymer gypsum, fiberglass, wood, foam and paint,” the museum says. It was “inspired by sources ranging from Italian and Northern Renaissance painting to Gothic architecture and Hellenistic sculpture.” The work's title refers to the 18th century Italian architect and surveyor Giambattista Nolli, who is known for the iconic map of Rome that he completed in 1748. Al-Hadid was born in 1981 in Syria and currently lives and works in New York City. Go here to learn more.

Comedian Amy Schumer comes to the State Theatre at PlayhouseSquare on Saturday.

Classical music

Thursday, Feb. 20, through Tuesday, Feb. 25: “Sephardic Journey: Wanderings of the Spanish Jews" is the new show from baroque orchestra Apollo's Fire, which will present five performances of the show through Feb. 25 in Cleveland and Akron. The musical journey “interweaves Sephardic folk song with the Monteverdi-like Hebrew choral work of Salamone Rossi, 'The Songs of Solomon.' The daily rhythms of life and love culminate in the mystical prayers of the Shabbat,” according to the orchestra. Featured soloists are Nell Snaidas (soprano), Karim Sulayman (tenor) and Jeffrey Strauss (baritone). Details are here.

It's not that cold! Get outside and play on Saturday in Ohio City.

Comedy

Saturday, Feb. 15: Comedy Central star Amy Schumer brings her “Back Door Tour” to the State Theatre at PlayhouseSquare this weekend. Schumer's show, “Inside Amy Schumer,” launched last April and became a big cable hit with its mix of scripted vignettes, standup comedy and person-on-the-street interviews about sex, relationships and other topics. (Season two begins April 1.) The Cleveland show starts at 8 p.m. Ticket information is here.

The colors pop in 'The Umbrellas of Cherbourg,' a 1964 film starring Catherine Deneuve.

Festival

Saturday, Feb. 15: Sick of winter? Undoubtedly you are. But don't let that stop you from checking out the fifth annual “Brite Winter,” an outdoor winter art and music festival in Ohio City's Market District. The event runs from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. and features an outdoor stage and programming at West 26th Street and Market Avenue, and another stage in Market Square Park. More than 70 bands are set to perform, and, given where this all takes place, there's lots of great food and drinks. Click here for details.

SLAP Jazz Trio will present a free, one-hour musical tribute show in Lakewood on Sunday as a tribute to John Coltrane and Lou Reed.

Film

Friday, Feb. 14: If you need a romantic movie fix for Valentine's Day, “The Umbrellas of Cherbourg,” screening at Cleveland Cinematheque, should do the trick. In this 1964 winner of the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, Catherine Deneuve plays a French shopgirl — hooked you already, right? — who falls in love with a mechanic but marries another man. Cinematheque says director Jacques Demy's musical is “a romantic, candy-colored concoction,” albeit one with “a bittersweet aftertaste.” It screens at 6:45 p.m. Thursday and 9:15 p.m. Friday. (The French title is “Les Parapluies de Cherbourg,” which sounds even nicer.) Learn more here.

Saturday, Feb. 15: A cult film of a different sort, Walter Hill's 1979 “The Warriors,” gets a midnight screening at Cleveland's Capitol Theatre as part of the “Melt Bar & Grilled Late Shift” series. Michael Beck and James Remar star in this offbeat action thriller about a New York gang that has to fight its way through all sort of enemy territories to get to their home turf. Get tickets here.

The Rubber City Rollergirls host Cleveland's Burning River Roller Girls on Saturday night in Akron.

Popular music

Sunday, Feb. 16: In honor of both the 50th anniversary of the recording of John Coltrane's "A Love Supreme" and the recent death of the legendary Lou Reed, SLAP Jazz Trio will present a free, one-hour musical tribute show at 2 p.m. at the Lakewood Public Library. The Cleveland trio says it will “explore various parallels between the careers” of Coltrane and Reed and will perform songs from both modern masters. The percentage of people who like either Coltrane or Reed has to be 100%, right? So this has something for everyone. Show information is here.

Sports

Saturday, Feb. 15: There's nothing like a rivalry game — even when it's in a sport you know nothing about. The Rubber City Rollergirls are taking on Cleveland's Burning River Roller Girls for the Akron squad's home opener at the John S. Knight Center. Never seen a roller derby? No problem — it's a modest investment. Tickets for adults are $9 in advance and $13 at the door, while kids 12 and under are $5 in advance and $6 at the door. Go here (Rollergirls) and here (Roller Girls) for information.

Theater

Friday, Feb. 14, through Sunday, March 9: Cleveland Play House's newest production, “Breath and Imagination,” brings to light the story of a little-known trailblazer in the cause for equality: Roland Hayes, the son of former slaves who became a world-renowned classical vocalist. Raised during the Jim Crow era, Hayes “overcame many obstacles to achieve his dreams of becoming a professional singer and his ultimate dream of opening an integrated music school in the South,” according to the Play House. The show is written by acclaimed playwright Daniel Beaty, directed by May Adrales and stars Cleveland native Elijah Rock as Hayes. It's on stage at the Allen Theatre at PlayhouseSquare. Information is here.

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